Rebecca’s Caffeinated Caper to Find the Ideal Cold Brew

By Rebecca Lucchesi, Staff Writer

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I like coffee. Revolutionary, I know– and by some odd coincidence, it seems a lot of other people share that sentiment. More specifically, I love cold brews; other coffees are fine, yes, but I feel that nothing beats a rich, icy cold brew. Now, I’m not the only one in town who likes coffee; it’s safe to say most people do, so much so that it almost feels like every five steps you can run into a coffee shop; it can be a little overwhelming. That is why I have taken it upon myself to scope out a few of these many locations and see which of these various cafes offers the best cold brew. This little escapade was spread across various days, and I was accompanied by different people in every cafe; however, one thing remained constant: my order. To keep things from deviating, my order at every stop was a cold brew with almond milk, a simple order to keep the focus on what’s most important, the coffee.

My first stop on this caffeinated caper was Starbucks. It was only fitting I start here; after all, I do feel it’s the most popular choice among my peers and often for myself as well. When I drink from here, however, I stick to their specialty drinks– lattes, nitros– the whole nine yards, and after this review, I think I’ll be sticking to that mentality. Although I’ve had decent cold brews from Starbucks in the past, today’s was less than that. It was very watered down, bizarre given it was mostly coffee rather than milk, and had a not-so-tasty aftertaste, which I’ve never experienced from them before. I could only muster a few sips of this cold brew before I had to put it down. I was left pretty disappointed. I do think Starbucks does their own specialty drinks phenomenally, but if it’s a cold brew you’re looking for, I would recommend looking elsewhere.

Up next was Stewart’s. Now, most of the time, I would advise against any gas station coffee… trust me on that. But Stewart’s is the exception. Stewart’s cold brew is what I consider to be the perfect middle ground, the most inoffensive cold brew on this list. It’s nothing to ride home about, but it’s a perfectly decent, quick, and very convenient choice if you’re in need of a quick boost in energy or if you’re just craving a nice cold brew. 

Following Stewart’s was Village Grind, or what I consider to be the most underrated coffee shop in town. Village Grind knocks it out of the park when it comes to quality. The cold brew itself tasted fantastic, the balance of flavor between coffee and milk was perfect, the size and amount were totally worth the price, and to top it off, they had coffee ice, so your drink won’t water down when it melts. Everything about this place was perfect, and I can confirm that remains the case even if you aren’t looking specifically for a cold brew. Their other drinks are phenomenal, and their baked goods are delicious. Please do yourself a favor and give it a try if you haven’t; you won’t regret it.

After praising Village Grind so much, you’d think it’d be difficult to follow them, but let me tell you, Mudd Puddle easily stands toe-to-toe with them. Unfortunately, they didn’t have cold brews when I went, so I got an iced coffee instead, and while that might make them ineligible for this particular review, I still want an excuse to rave about them, because man do they deserve it. The coffee was absolutely delicious; it was the perfect amount of bitter with an extremely pleasant taste. I downed the thing in seconds. It left me feeling super satisfied, which was no surprise to me. The people over at The Mudd Puddle are incredibly skilled at what they do, and with an affordable price and location right on Water Street, this spot is an amazing choice for a delicious coffee. 

My next stop was Dry Fly, and to be honest, I think their addition to this particular list was just unfortunate. What I mean is that Dry Fly has great hot coffees, lattes, and other specialty drinks, but when it comes to cold brews, they are lacking, at least today. It was overpoweringly bitter, and way too strong for what I was looking for, and I should also probably mention they didn’t have cold cups, so over time the cup got cold and floppy. But I want to remind you that this is simply a review of their cold brew, because it doesn’t feel fair to base an entire opinion regarding them solely on their cold brew since they do their other drinks well and have a very nice location right on the Rail Trail. Overall, Dry Fly is in no way a “bad” coffee shop, but if it’s a cold brew you’re in the mood for, I would advise you to look somewhere else.

Finally, I stopped at Gunks Gaming Guild, and I’m pleased to say this review is ending on a high note. Simply put, Gunks Gaming Guild was just an overall very pleasant experience; the place itself was very charming, the coffee was delicious, and the service was great as well. Our barista gave us an extra shot of espresso in our cold brews free of charge because they worried the brew was “too weak today,” and you could certainly taste it, but I mean that very positively- it was strong, rich, and made for a great cup of coffee. I recommend giving it a try.